


Distinctly Her

by OMGitsgreen



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn
Genre: All The Ships, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, F/M, Femslash February, Fluff and Angst, Girls Kissing, Lesbian Character, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-28
Updated: 2016-02-28
Packaged: 2018-05-23 15:46:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6121456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OMGitsgreen/pseuds/OMGitsgreen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"A smile spread across her lips, kindness was printed upon her face in the softness of her brow, the sweetness of her wood-violet eyes. She looked at Lili as Lili was sure only one or two people would look at her in her entire life, as if Lili had the princess’s full attention and that there was no one the princess would rather be seeing." In an alternate take on canon, Lady Lili is asked to be the companion of Princess Yona before her marriage, and becomes implicated in matters of the heart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Distinctly Her

**Author's Note:**

> -Green jumps through a window-
> 
> It isn’t too late to post something for Femslash February? No? Okay! Here’s my femslash February fic, lol. Please enjoy this Canon Divergent AU Yona/Lili fic for all of my yuri shippers out there! I see you and I appreciate you!

The royal palace stood tall and imposing, a shadow across all of Kuuto that only grew larger with every step. Lili couldn’t help but hug herself tighter as the carriage containing her and her two retainers Ayura and Tetora grew closer to where Lili would now be living.

“It shouldn’t be all bad, Lili,” Tetora tried to offer in comfort.

“The nights will be so quiet without the rain,” Lili said blandly, trying to bit her lip to hold back tears of frustration. Not answering Tetora’s comment and by the way Ayura sighed heavily, neither of them were expecting an answer to it.

The King has asked a few things in return with helping her father with the Nadai dealers in the region, one of them was for Lili to act as lady-in-waiting to the princess in preparation for her wedding. It would only be a few months, the King has told her father, for the princess without any womanly influence was lacking in feminine arts. The King had asked for a friend and confident, and her father (oh so rational, oh so reasonable, Lili nearly spat with vitriol) had sent her with all of the decorum of a crate of supplies being shipped off to a merchant. With little explanation she was carted off and away from the lands where Lili was actually trying to do some good. She had no time to be playing with some plaything princess, and no desire to do so either. But Lili was the proud daughter of the Water Tribe general and would do as she was told. After all, the wedding was only a few months away, and then she could return back to her life.

When she arrived she was brought to her rooms, as opulent and well dressed as any room at Suiko Castle, though perhaps more ostentatious. It was obvious no woman’s touch could be found there as everything looked gorgeous on thought of design rather than aesthetic. With Ayura and Tetora following her like her own shadows, she was escorted to where she would meet the princess. It was then the vague ghost of nervousness over took her, because the princess of the Kouka kingdom was like an illustrious phantom that was only ever heard of and unseen. Lili didn’t even know what the princess was like or if she wanted her there, so who was to say that these few months wouldn’t be wretched?

“Would you like us to come in with you?” Tetora asked worriedly.

“I shall be fine, wait outside for me, alright?” Lili said, waving off Tetora’s concerns and trying to appear confident.

“Very well, Lady Lili,” Ayura said, bowing her dark head as her dark eyes gazed through all of Lili’s bravado easily.

The ladies-in-waiting went inside for a moment before with smiles that Lili couldn’t understand motioned for her to go in. Lili was completely stunned and stood still. The floor was covered with pillows and fine silk blankets of every foreign make and bombastic color (Lili’s eyes caught a rainbow embroidered sea-foam greens and fluttering sunset-oranges and ruby-reds and sky-blue that all seemingly rippled and shifted before she could get a handle on them), goose-feathers dancing in the air as the white curtains fluttered like waves in the summer breeze as nearly blinding filtered through the open windows that the ladies-in-waiting moved to close.

The princess lay out across a chair, pale legs stark against the fluttering blue skirt of her dress her curls like fire stark against elegant pale neck, her arms were thrown behind her, fingers reaching in a stretch. The sash of her dress was loosened and ruffled by her midafternoon nap revealing a glimpse of her bust, and Lili stood frozen as violet eyes met hers. A smile spread across her lips, kindness was printed upon her face in the softness of her brow, the sweetness of her wood-violet eyes. She looked at Lili as Lili was sure only one or two people would look at her in her entire life, as if Lili had the princess’s full attention and that there was no one the princess would rather be seeing.

“Are you Lady Lili? An Joon-Gi’s daughter?” The princess asked her voice tender and warm, sitting up and absentmindedly fixing her wild curls that tumbled brighter than anything Lili had ever seen. Lili curtseyed despite her oddly numb and shaky legs.

“I am, my lady,” Lili said, her voice strangely loud and scratchy. The princess swung her legs childishly the momentum helping her stand up, she moved not to straighten out her dress as it unfurled and twirled around her but instead reached to grasp Lili’s hands with impossibly soft, warm, fingers.

“I heard about how you helped to take down the Nadai Ring! All from Hak. I want to hear everything, Lady Lili,” Princess Yona said, her violet eyes serious in their intensity.

“After you tell me about how you managed to get King Il to approve of your marriage to Lord Soo-Won,” Lili joked awkwardly and Princess Yona laughed bright and popping and Lili could almost taste the vivacity oozing from her.

“It was quite a battle, I shall tell you that!” Yona said proudly, placing her hands upon her hips. “I believe we shall be great friends, Lady Lili.”

“I hope so, my princess,” Lili couldn’t help but say.

She ignored how hot her ears felt.

* * *

_(The days passed in a haze of murky warmth, as if a fog swirled and clung to everything. The only thing that was clear was Yona, perhaps the clearest thing that Lili had ever known. Yona kissing a moonsliver cut that bled in a delicious hurt after grasping a thorny rose, the curve of Yona’s shoulder and her laughter as Lili blew bubbles in the bath and soaked in Yona’s essence, Yona sharing sips of tea and bites of dense nutty cake at night as they giggled about everything and anything. Yona, Yona, Yona—)_

* * *

“—Soo-Won will make a wonderful king,” Yona said as if sharing a deeply held secret and awaken Lili from her daze. Lili gently ran the comb through Yona’s curls, hardly able to contain the strange desire to bury her face there and breath in the sweet scent of the jasmine and honeysuckle infused soap and the scent that was distinctly her. But she held back that odd feeling, and limited herself to caring for Yona’s hair.

It was only a few days before Yona’s wedding, and the castle had been bustling with the sort of non-stop activity that was hard to grasp. Lili had been working to teach Yona the feminine arts of the wedding that she had been instructed in, and she worked hard in her lessons just as she did while she read in preparation to become the Queen. The marriage had seemingly lit a fire within her, a desire to become a good ruler, and her work only made Lili proud if not happy. But yes, that day something had been on Yona’s mind and Lili was happy Yona was finally fessing up.

“He will, but what has you worried?” Lili asked her gently.

“Nothing has me worried, I love Soo-Won, I always have,” Yona explained, “but my father is still against our marriage, though he has allowed it. I tried asking Hak what he thinks, but he gave nothing besides his attitude.”

(Oh Hak, Lili couldn’t help but think. Hak had always seemed to know that he was to never have the heart of the princess, it belonged to another. Hak would be happy when both Yona and Soo-Won were happy and never be anything less than content, but somehow that left the bitter taste of melancholy on Lili’s lips as she watched Hak’s gaze follow the two that were promised down to their last drop of blood as they walked forward without him in a covenant only they could share and it reminded Lili only of herself.)

“And you wish for your father’s approval?” Lili asked her, and Yona lifted up her legs to curl her toes around the edge of her chair. Yona nodded, and Lili placed down the comb and pulled the chair up next to her.

“Do you have any ideas, Lili? I’m no good at being cunning,” Yona said with a laugh as she rubbed her neck like a child being caught sneaking candies.

“If you could show the king how happy you are, maybe he would have no choice but to accept it?” Lili offered before folding her hands upon her lap.

“How can I show my father that?” Yona asked her curiously.

“Perhaps…if you acted more loverlike with Lord Soo-Won?” Lili offered, and watched as Yona’s face flushed red.

“You mean…kiss him? I’m not even sure he’s interested in me that way.”

“As husband and wife to be you should have affection between you, that’s only natural,” Lili said gently. “If he hasn’t…initiated anything, then you should do so.”

“But how?” Yona asked as she nervously tugged at her hair. “I would only mess it up! I would be too nervous!”

“I mean I don’t—“

“Would you practice with me?” Yona asked and Lili stared at her. Yona’s cheeks were flushed and Lili’s face had to be on fire.

“Princess I couldn’t—“ Lili spluttered out, her heart pounding in her ears.

“Just…let’s kiss. Please Lili I can only ask you to help me,” Yona begged, her own embarrassment making her cheeks glow like dimmed embers.

Lili at that point must have been possessed, her reality must have been a dream, this couldn’t have exist or have been happening. And yet Lili didn’t know who leaned in first or who accepted, but suddenly Yona’s mouth was slanted against hers in a butterfly touch that sent her on fire. Lili’s fingers were intertwined with Yona’s as they kissed with only lips (but with Lili’s whole heart).

Yona pulled away and was smiling,

“Was I terrible?”

“No,” Lili said, her own smile watery and feeling oddly like she might cry.

And she would, after Yona leaned in once more.


End file.
